The Little Red Wolf by Amélie Fléchais

I recieved an eARC of The Little Red Wolf by Amélie Fléchais from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

The story is short, but what it lacks in length, it makes up with stark macabre storytelling and visually astounding artwork that works with and enhances the reading experience.

This story is a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, and  translated from its original French into English.

The story follows a wolf family and a human family who live in the same woods.

A little wolf named Red is warned to stay away from the human hunters on his journey to bring food to his sick grandmother.

Amélie Fléchais’ writing is dark and morbid and her art is the highlight of the book. I’m partial to watercolors and her art carries a mysteriousness and slight eerieness that matches the tone of the tale pitch perfectly.

Despite the initial look of a children’s fairy tale, be forewarned that the reinterpretation is dark one, reminiscent of those original Grimm Fairytales where one could find the characters having their eyes pecked out by birds or pushed from the tallest of towers. I wouldn’t read this to my 4 year old niece but I actually think the text would be a nice analytical analysis for high school students, as they have a lot of complex deep themes they can work through here wrapped up in a familiar story.

I give the story 4/5 stars, only because I found the ending a bit abrupt, which that could easily be a translation issue. Otherwise the books is perfect. The kind you buy a hardback copy of and leave on the coffee table for company to admire.